Honda S660 kei-roadster spied in production guise

Earlier this year, we brought you a leaked brochure of the production Honda S660. Now, thanks to minkara, we have photographs of the kei-roadster sitting at a Japanese port in all its production-ready glory. Initially, previewed as a concept back at the 2013 Tokyo Motor Show, the lightweight sports car has been designed as a form of throwback to the original Honda Beat roadster from the 90s.

As such, the production Honda S660 features a three-cylinder, mid-mounted, turbocharged petrol engine pumping out a modest 64 hp and 104 Nm of torque. Power goes to the rear wheels via a six-speed manual or a CVT transmission. While the power figures may appear minute, do keep in mind that the Honda S660 is expected to weigh less than 1,000 kg – allowing for a top speed of 140 km/h.

The production S660 retains quite a fair bit of the aesthetic quirks found on the concept such as the broad front grille flanked by upswept head lamps. Even the wheel design appears to mimic the concept with its spiral motif, albeit wrapped with thinner tyres. At the rear, the biggest change would include the move from a twin exhaust setup to a single, centrally-mounted layout.

Inside, the Honda S660 features a radically toned-down cabin from the concept’s with a CR-Z-inspired layout with its digital instrument cluster. A closer look at the centre console also reveals that the iPhone-esque screen has been replaced by a less laughable unit.

Potential good news might stem from circulating rumours on a possible export-variant of the S660. According to Car and Driver, sources close to Honda’s R&D department have revealed that the Japanese automaker has been actively testing out a more powerful, 1.0 litre version for the United States market, rumoured to be called the S1000. Any chance of that version landing here in the future?

An “actor” by training, Gregory Sze realised that he has had enough of drama in his life. Following his number one passion (acting was actually number two), he decided to make the jump into the realm of automotive journalism. He appreciates the simple things in life – a simple car with nothing but back-to-basics mechanical engineering and minimal electronics on board.

Asking your to sell the car at RM35k, additional RM1k for the commission, but you keep ignore and blame this and that.
And the end, everyone know you bullshxt la..
What a pity guy.. live in own imagine world.. =(

Would be good if grey import really bring it in but my guess it’ll be around rm200k. One ap is rm30k irregardless you bring in a rm100k car or rm1 million so they prefer to bring in high value cars to get higher profits

It Dosent look as small in the pictures, the other kei-roadster, the daihatsu Coopen, looks like a scaled up toy but this looks proportionately correct, I could mistake it for something the size of a porsche boxster or the SW20 MR2.

It’s personally the ideal Japanese sports car…. In Japan. Especially if you are still grasping grassroots racing or some other beginner racing series, it’s light and nimble with a proper MR layout to give you that sports car handling but without the power to send you to the morgue if you make a mistake. And being a kei-car, you get all the benefits of reduced taxes, making it a joy to own.

However, take it out of Japan and kei-cars become a problem. No kei-car currently passes any US IIHS test, which means safety is an issue especially when in collision with something bigger which basically means everything else on the road save for those kapcais. And no matter how light it is, 69hp is no where enough to move any Americans to any form of velocity. And judging from Daihatsu Coopen reviews, iam not sure the interior room will please any Americans. If they can sort this issues out, iam sure it can be a small success in America thou I see Europe as a better market Candidate.

As for Malaysia, it’s possible that this can be price under the CRZ and possibly be a replacement for the CRZ here in ASEAN where the CRZ was sold rather decently. But given that this is boleh land, apa apa pun boleh berlaku during its transit from Japan to here, price tag increase, airbag missing.

I guess if they sell this at RM80k, they already untung and those young and single adults might just consider this over a normal sedan. Something sporty, new and doesn’t blow a big hole in the pocket. Why not.

It might sound a bit ridicilous but not impossible -for the more powerful version, Honda could use a high revving 1000cc 4-cylinder engine lifted straight from the CBR1000RR superbike!
But since this is the age of turbocharging, I guess the existing turbocharged 660cc three cylinder would just be stroked to 1000cc..sigh..

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